As they approached a lone streetlamp that remained stubbornly illuminating its small stretch of pavement, staving off the darkness that had succeeded in overtaking everything else in sight, Cameron let out a deep breath, as if admitting defeat. He dabbed at his nose and examined the cloth. Believing the worst was over, he dropped his arm to the side and sighed. “She never said anything to me.”
Jade looked over at him. “Who? Shanna, you mean? What Damien said?”
“Yeah, what Damien said.”
“Well, she was probably sworn to secrecy. Valor tricked her…maybe. I don’t know.”
“Either way, she put all of us in jeopardy. Or at least she thought she did. And she went ahead with it anyway.”
“That’s not fair. She thought that it was inevitable. Valor convinced her that it was. And, well, Valor was sort of right. Joining The Agency was an admission of what we are. We’re hunters. Of course the monsters were going to identify us if we survived for long, shone in the spotlight. That’s what this whole formation was about, wasn’t it? Defeating the bad guys over and over again. Of course that meant a few would get away and find out who we were. But does that even matter? I mean, sure, there’s no option to return to our old lives, but hadn’t we already resolved to this? We’re safe as a team. We’re here…we were born…to do this.”
“No, we were fated to do this,” Cameron disagreed. “I was born into a family that loved me, into a life that welcomed me with open arms. Fate changed things. Events. But I wasn’t born this way.”
“But doesn’t fate and destiny and all of that mean that it was preordained? That no matter what occurred, you would always end up here, as a part of this group, no matter how you were born into the world or by whom?”
Cameron shook his head. “Poor choice of words.”
“And anyway, fate took that all away from you. Your family isn’t there for you anymore.”
“Yes, they are. Well, my mother anyway.”
“Oh. I’m sorry. I thought all of our circumstances were similar. What happened to-”
“Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”
They walked in silence for a minute as they finally reached the lone streetlamp, illuminating the street. Jade stared up as they passed beneath it, watched a moth beat against its glass casing over and over again, like the light itself were a siren song compelling it to give its life for a touch of warmth.
“Shanna’s a good person,” Jade finally broke the silence as darkness washed over their features once more. “She’s the best person I’ve ever known. But she’s also loyal. The Agency, Valor, told her to keep a secret and she did. I can’t fault her for that.”
“If she’s so loyal, she wouldn’t have let that vampire touch her, feed off of her.”
Jade scoffed. “Oh, come on. It’s not like you were even dating back then. Are you going to fault her for every man she’s ever dated? Does she have the right to fault you for every woman you’ve ever slept with?”
“I can be angry that she let a vampire drink from her and hid it from me. I have that right.”
“Fine. Whatever. You know what I think? You’re an incredibly jealous ass. And Shanna’s too good for you.”
Cameron looked over at her, an amused smile compromising his sour mood. “Oh really?”
“Yes, really. She’s a little naïve. But she’s…oh, stop looking at me like that.”
“Do you have a crush on my girlfriend, Jade?”
“Shut up. I just admire her.”
“Well admire her all you like, just don’t touch.”
Jade blinked, then laughed. She doubled over after a moment, giggles sending stitches into her sides.
Cameron shook his head incredulously at first, but ended up giving in, joining her on the ground.
It was several minutes before they were able to pull themselves back together and continue walking, Jade blaming the lack of sleep for her outburst.
“I’m sorry,” Cameron apologized. “I’m just crazy that….that vampire-”
“Oh, you must mean that incredibly hot vampire Damien Farr?” Jade helped.
Cameron glared daggers. “That that vampire is so infatuated by Shanna. That and…we just had a…talk. About not keeping secrets from each other. And then…I find out this huge thing that she was hiding. It just…really got to me.”
“Apology accepted. And I feel for you. But you’ve got to trust her, Cameron. If not that she’s telling you every little facet of her life, then trust that she’s doing right by you.”
“I know. I’m trying. I’m…” Cameron looked up, suddenly aware that they’d reached the houses. It was as if they’d been navigating by instinct. It was a shock to realize that they’d come so far already. “We’re here.”
Jade nodded, then froze when she saw a crumpled figure on the ground outside of one of the doors. “What…” She sprinted the rest of the way to the figure, Cameron right behind her. She bent down and examined the person quickly, then turned her over and stared down into Serene’s face, eyeing the reddish-purple welt on her forehead. “That looks nasty.”
Serene groaned.
“I’ll look in the house,” Cameron offered, and quickly disappeared within.
Jade watched over Serene anxiously until Cameron returned a few minutes later. “There’s no one else here. I’ll go check the other house.”
“Cameron?” a voice asked tentatively, slipping out of the entrance of the other house.
“Krystal?” Cameron jogged over to her and cried out when the girl slumped into him. “Krystal?!”
Krystal shook her head. “I’m okay. I just…Todd was…he went crazy. I had to keep him pinned down.” She stepped away from Cameron on shaky legs. “I just…do you guys do this all the time? It’s really scary.”
“Not all the time, but yeah…we do this.”
Krystal nodded. “I’ve seen scary things but…at least I can control them.”
“Control?” Cameron shook his head. “I don’t follow.”
“Serene?” Ligeia suddenly stepped out of the house behind them, helping a dazed Todd. “Is she alright?”
“She’ll be okay,” Jade announced. “She just woke up.”
“It was horrible,” Ligeia related. “The guys all started to act crazy! They just got up and ran away all of a sudden.”
“They…wait, who ran away?”
“Saul and Brett. They’re gone.”
“They’re…gone?” Jade and Cameron looked at each other, then Jade got a startled look on her face. “Where’s…where’s my brother? Jordan?” She looked beyond them at the house and yelled. “Jordan?!”
“He took off too,” Krystal revealed. “But Amelia went after him. I’m sure he’s alright.”
“He is,” a voice rang out from up the street.
Jade looked up to see the remaining hunters walking toward them. She started when she saw Jordan leaning on Natalia. “Jordan?”
“You don’t want to mess with Natalia,” he quipped, giving his sister a hug. He looked over at the other guys and whistled. “Wow. You don’t want to mess with…any of the ladies.”
“We have these now,” Hunter said, offering lumps of wax to the men. “During the night, I’d advise that we make use of these.”
“Wax?” Ligeia looked down at them with distaste.
“We can head into town tomorrow to get some earplugs, but these will do for now. Put them in your ears and you won’t hear the siren song. At least not good enough to give in to its lies. The men…I’m afraid the men won’t be of much use during the late hours, unless they’re researching.” Hunter paused. “And where’s Saul?”
Jade hesitated. “He’s gone. Brett too.”
“I suppose they were left alone with Serene and Ligeia?” Rachel asked bluntly.
“Huh?” Ligeia looked bewildered. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that t
hey don’t trust us,” Serene stated, sitting up slowly. “And why would they? We just lost their friends.”
“And what, they didn’t notice the extra head growing on yours?”
Serene gingerly touched the welt on her forehead and winced. “I’ll be fine. But we need to do something. We have to find Saul and Brett. I think they were heading toward the beach.”
Jade looked over at Natalia, who was expressionless as ever. “What should we do?”
Natalia met her gaze. “I’m afraid that it’s too dark to do anything now. Those that can rest should, but I don’t think it wise to separate for the night anymore. We should gather supplies and bring what we can back to the tower, where we can monitor one another.”
“But Saul…” Todd looked up at Hunter, then looked away.
Cameron stared at Shanna, who had yet to speak, let alone let him know that she was glad to see him safe.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“I did not sleep well,” Rachel moaned as she stepped out of the small bathroom into the group of hunters ready to set out toward the beach.
Shanna was sure she looked much worse than Rachel, having examined the dark circles under her own eyes in the mirror prior to Rachel’s insistence on occupying the tiny space. But Rachel probably knew plenty of tricks to hide puffy eyes and walk out of a trickle of water with the hair of a supermodel. It was hard to picture the girl in the dirt and sand as an archaeologist. Her cosmetic skills didn’t seem compatible.
“The cots aren’t exactly comfortable,” Hunter acquiesced. “I’d hoped the sleeping bags and extra blankets would have made up for any shortcomings.”
Rachel shook her head. “No, it’s…it’s more the situation than the accommodations. I mean…what if we never find a way out of this? What if we’re stuck on this plane forever? I can’t imagine…it’s freaking me out a little.”
“You knew the risks of hunting,” Jade said.
Rachel glared at her. “Well, that’s helpful. But I’d take death at the hands of a hell beast while trying to save the world over just, you know, getting lost and dying of old age.”
“Now, now,” Jordan stepped in. “It’s not going to come to that. We have some bright minds here. We’ll get the device working again. If not, we’ll think of something else or Valor’s people will. We’re not…out of options.”
“Amazing how we’re on the sirens' island without having stepped foot on it.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, we’re just as isolated as if we’d shipwrecked here, aren’t we? Stranded, looking for a way home, or hoping for rescue. It’s ridiculous.”
Jordan looked away and there was an uncomfortable silence for a moment in which they proceeded down the stairs and out the front door.
Krystal, who opened the door, gave a little gasp, which prompted them all to increase their speed to see what she’d reacted to.
Cameron gazed back at Shanna, startled, once he stepped outside, and she sent him a questioning look before seeing for herself.
At first all Shanna saw was Valor, on her knees just outside of the tower, her hand hovering over the ground, swinging back and forth between the grass that led up to the tower and disappearing into the tower stone itself, as if it were made of air and not solid matter.
Even though she was well aware of their situation, it was still startling to see, so she could understand the reactions of the other hunters.
“The tower is around here?” a voice asked from behind her.
Shanna turned around, wide-eyed and stared at Damien, his hands on his hips, his forehead furrowed. Her heart leapt in her chest and she nearly staggered into Amelia, who stood beside her, also watching the vampire.
“It’s overcast,” the sorceress murmured, looking up at the sky. “So it’s safe for him to be out. For now.”
“Yeah, but why is he here?” Rachel asked.
“We, uh, we saw him last night with Valor,” Jade admitted, turning red. “I guess with all of the other excitement, we failed to mention that he was with her.”
“And who is this?” Hunter asked, stepping closer to the vampire and looking him up and down carefully.
“Damien Farr,” Cameron practically spat the name out.
Hunter flinched at the name and glanced over at Shanna uneasily. “I see.”
“Who?” Krystal asked, but Jordan grabbed the girl’s arm and began to lead her away, and a few of the others followed, including Serene, Ligeia and Amelia.
“We overheard some things. He offered to help Valor,” Jade offered sheepishly. “Checking up on the progress here, I guess.” She glanced over at Cameron uncertainly.
Watching Damien stand there, annoyance written on his face due to Valor’s failure to answer him, made Shanna feel quite…happy. She hadn’t been expecting him, but knowing that he cared enough to come here and search for her…that he was worried about her…made her feel…safe, perhaps? It was nice to know that a guardian angel was out there watching over her. A beautiful guardian angel.
Natalia cleared her throat softly beside her and Shanna shook herself from her reverie, remembering that she was in the company of others. In the company of Cameron. Having temporarily forgotten his presence, Shanna lifted her eyes to his with embarrassment.
He looked away immediately, as if he was also embarrassed by something, and she realized that this situation was extremely uncomfortable for him. So, with one last reluctant look at Damien, she turned to Jade. “So, um, you said that you weren’t able to communicate with Valor last night…do you think there’s anything you can do now? Anything in the tower you can use?"
Jade glanced over at Todd. “I’m not sure, to be honest. There are some things I’ve been thinking of that we could try. I’ll stay behind to see what we can come up with.”
Todd nodded and they both went back inside the tower.
“Completely unaware of us,” Hunter said to himself, running a hand through Damien’s arm. “But the temperature drops where we meet…like a ghost’s…” He frowned and looked around. “Where is Krystal?”
“Oh, they’ve gone ahead,” Rachel said. “We should probably…” She looked between Cameron and Shanna, and began walking in the direction that the others had disappeared.
Shanna followed obediently, not letting herself look back once as she walked ahead of Cameron, despite the torture she felt for denying this impulse. For the past month, she’d pined to be with Damien, had hoped in vain for him to appear to her, and there he was…proving that he cared, yet unaware of her presence. It was incredibly frustrating when all she wanted to do was rush into his arms…
She heard Cameron grunt as a branch she’d moved out of her way hit him, and she felt her conflicting emotions turn against her, berating her for feeling how she did with her boyfriend not three feet behind her.
But seeing Damien’s face again after a month of uncertainty, even after the words he’d said to her when last they’d met…it was like a curtain fell over everything else and all she could see was his piercing eyes, his sensual lips…
But is he here for you? A voice nagged her, from the back of her mind. Or is he here for her?
Shanna nearly gasped as the thought entered her mind. The face from the book, her own face that she was growing to hate, taunted her. Despite all of her efforts the previous night, Shanna had been unable to find any more Diana references. Hunter had been equally fruitless. So she would have to remain in the dark a little while longer. Hopefully, when this nightmare was over, Hunter could get his hands on some texts more pertinent to her predicament. For now, she would have to focus on the task at hand. All distractions, both physical and…prophetic…would have to wait.
Chapter Twenty-Four
It was two hours later when the clouds began to dissipate and they watched the sun peek through the cloud cover. And before long, the sun was whole in the sky, warming the Grecian soil and lighting all but the deep shadows of the ru
ins and monuments where the hunters found themselves, looking for new clues as they made their way methodically toward the beach.
“Do you really think they’re sirens?” Rachel asked as she walked alongside Shanna through alleys of high weeds poking through the packed earth.
Shanna sighed. “I don’t know…Serene was hit pretty hard. It makes me think twice about things, but…they’re covering up something at the very least. They’re not from around here.”
“Did I tell you that I was reading up on the sirens last night?”
“Mmm. Riveting reading?”
“Not my ideal way to spend time, but they didn’t have a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo handy. Anyway, the sirens are the daughters of Phorcys, and are supposed to be either part bird or mermaids or something. It’s not too clear. But after Odysseus, or was it Jason?…both of them encountered the sirens…anyway, when whoever passed by their island, tied to the mast to stop him from going to them, the sirens supposedly threw themselves into the sea, because a man surviving the siren song was so completely unacceptable.”
“So…the legends may not be too accurate, or maybe there are more sirens out there?”
“Sure.”
“That was totally useless information.”
Rachel laughed. “Maybe.” They peaked into a dusty relic of a temple and continued on a few minutes later. “So, what do you think about Damien being here?”
Shanna looked back at her. “I’m…I don’t know…I have conflicting feelings.”
“Mmmm. It’s quite the predicament. Cameron seemed pretty tense.”
“Yeah, I…I know.”
They continued in silence for a moment before Shanna stopped to retie her shoe laces while Rachel examined an altar of sorts.
“It feels creepy here,” Shanna said with a shudder as they began to trek through the broken terrain again, rocks coming off the steps with their footfalls, glimpsing far off ruins through the walls of those closest to them. “Like time has fast-forwarded a thousand years and these are the ruins of humanity.”
Rachel laughed. “You have a flare for the dramatic, Shanna Hunt.”
“I’m serious,” Shanna looked hurt. “Doesn’t it feel like we’re walking through a dead city that should still be alive? It’s just a shell now, but…is this the kind of thing we’re going to leave behind when humanity disappears forever? This deteriorating husk that represents our civilization in the most…superfluous ways?”